According to Wards, the U.S. sales of diesel-powered cars and trucks have grown 41 percent in the past five years to almost 409,000 last year. The top selling diesel model in the United States is the Ford F-Series, followed by its compet...
According to Wards, the U.S. sales of diesel-powered cars and trucks have grown 41 percent in the past five years to almost 409,000 last year. The top selling diesel model in the United States is the Ford F-Series, followed by its competitor, the Ram Ram Pickup, and not at all surprisingly, the VW Jetta.
With 10,276 units, the BMW X5 is the first premium model in the Top Selling Diesel list, followed with 6,688 units by Mercedes-Benz GL.
In a previous review, our own Chuck Vossler describes the heart of the X5 diesel:
The BMW X5 35d’s diesel motor, internal code name M57TU, is an inline-6 cylinder 3.0-liter with an aluminum alloy block. It has 4 valves per cylinder, dual overhead cams and sequential twin turbochargers. Third-generation Piezo common rail direct injection pumps fuel in at 26,000 psi. The X5 35d motor produces peak 265 horsepower at 4200 rpm. An impressive 425 lb-ft of torque is available from 1,750 rpm through 2,250 rpm. The M57TU has a compression ratio of 16.5:1 and produces 88.3 hp per liter. The BMW M57 diesel hustles the X5 35d 0-60 in 6.9 seconds and yields 26 mpg on the highway and 19 mpg for the city. Add in a fuel capacity of 22.5 gallons and you get a theoretical, bladder busting highway range of 585 miles.
[Comparison: 2012 BMW X5 35d vs. 2013 Porsche Cayenne Diesel]
The next generation BMW X5 due out this summer will continue to be offered with the xDrive35d option, but it remains unknown if the model will be available at market launch.
Brand
Model 2012 Sales
Ford
F-Series
105,239
Ram
Ram Pickup
87,722
Volkswagen
Jetta
48,099
Chevrolet
Silverado
43,015
Volkswagen
Passat
26,469
GMC
Sierra
21,792
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Van
20,929
BMW
X5
10,276
Volkswagen
Golf
10,043
Mercedes-Benz
GL
6,688
Source: Ward’s AutoInfoBank
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